The Labor enquirer., 1887-12-24

All the organized forces ofsociety
are against them. Capital has the
army and the navy, the legislature,
the judicial and the executive de-
partments. When the rich COM
bine, it is for the purpose Of 'ex-
changing ideas" When the poor
combine it is a Conspiracy" If
they act in concert, if they really
do something it is a mob" If
they defend themselves, it is
treason" How is it that the
rich control the departments of
government? In this country the
political power is equally divided
among men. There are certainly
more poor than there are rich.
Why should the rich control?
Why should not the laborers COM
bine for the purpose of controlling
the executive, the legislative and
judicial Departmental Will they
ever find how powerful they are7
A cry comes from the oppressed,
from the hungry, from the down
trodden, from tn { unfortunate,
from the despised, from men who
despair and from women who
weep. There are times whenmen-
dicants become revolutionists-
When a rag becomes a banner,
under which the noblest and brav-
est battle for right.
Howar we to settle the unequal
contest between men and ma
chimes? Will the machine finally
60 into partnership with the la
borer? Can these forces of nature
be controlled for the benefit of her
suffering children? Will extrava-
gance keep pace with ingenuity7
Will the workmen become intelli-
gent enough and strong enough to
be the owners of the machines?
Will these giants. these Titans,
shorten or lengthen the hours of
labor7 Will they give leisure to
the industrious, or will they make
the rich richer and the poor
poorer? Is man involved in the
general scheme" of things7 Is
there no pity, no mercy7 Can
man become intelligent enough to
be generous, to be just; or does
the same law or fact control him
as controls the animal and vegeta-
BILE world7 The great oak steals
the sunlight from the smaller trees.
The strong animals devour the
weak-everything eating some
thing else-everything at the mer-
cy of the beak, and claw, and hoof,
and tooth-of hand and club. of
brain andgreed-i inequality, injus-
tice everywhere. The poor horse
standing in the street with his
dray, over-worked, over-whipped
and under-fed, when he sees other
horses groomed to mirrors, gilt
tering with gold and Silver, scorn-
ing with proud feet I'll e very earth,
probably INDUCES il the usual
Socialistic reflections, and this
same horse, worn out and old, de
serted by his master, turned into
the dusty road, leans his head on
the topmost rail, looks at donkeys
in field OF clover, and feels like
a Nihilist.
In the days of slaverythe strong
devoured the weak-actually ate
their flesh. In spite ofall the laws
that man has made, in spite of all
advances in science, the strong,
the cunning, the heartless still live
on the weak, the unfortunate and
foolish. True, they do not eat
their flesh or drink their blood,
but they live on their labor, on
their self-denial, their WEAKNESS
and want. The poor man who de-
forms himself by toll, who labors
for wife and child through all his
anxious, barren, wasted life who
goes to the grave without ever
having had one luxury-has been
the food of others. He has been
devoured by his fellow-men. The
poor woman living in the bare and